CBU To Host First Ever Courtyard Shakespeare Festival

Riverside, Calif.(June 1, 2016) – You can expect plenty of drama in the Smith Courtyard for the next couple of weeks at California Baptist University. The theatre department
at CBU will create an outdoor theater to stage two plays during the program's inaugural
Courtyard Shakespeare Festival starting this weekend.

CBU students, alumni and actors from the community will comprise the caststhatwill performin repertory productions of "Midsummer Night's Dream" and"Romeo and Juliet."

Garret Replogle ('11), theatre shop foreman, is directing "Midsummer Night's Dream."
He said that having actors from the community will help students gain valuable experience
working alongside professionals.

Frank Mihelich, assistant professor of theatre, is directing "Romeo and Juliet" andwillalso portrayLord Capulet in the play. He said an outdoor theater is the venue that Shakespeare intended for his plays.

"In [indoor theater], we do everything for you. Out here, you have to bring your imagination
to it. But there is something that's really wonderful about doing outdoor theater
because it's such an event," Mihelichsaid.

Both productions feature different settings than the original plays: "Romeo and Juliet" is set during the Italian Renaissance, whereas"Midsummer Night's Dream" takes place in the '30s at an abandoned carnival in the
South.